Psoriasis patients at higher risk for arrhythmia

(HealthDay)—Patients with psoriasis are at higher risk of developing arrhythmia, even after controlling for other risk factors, according to a study published in the September issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Hsien-Yi Chiu, M.D., from the National Taiwan University in Taipei, and colleagues utilized the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (2004 through 2006) to identify 40,637 patients with psoriasis and 162,548 subjects without psoriasis. The participants were matched by age, sex, history of coronary artery disease, hypertension, and diabetes.

The researchers found that after adjusting for medical history and medication use, patients with psoriasis were at increased risk of overall arrhythmia (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.34). The higher risk of arrhythmia was seen in all subgroups, including patients with severe and mild psoriasis (aHRs, 1.25 and 1.35, respectively), as well as in patients with and without psoriatic arthritis (aHRs, 1.46 and 1.33, respectively).

"Patients with psoriasis were at higher risk of developing arrhythmia, particularly those with psoriatic arthritis, independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors," the authors write.

One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.